Tye Ruotolo has been sensational in ONE Championship action. The talented American will look to join his brother as a champion at ONE Fight Night 16 on Friday, November 3, when he meets Magomed Abdulkadirov for the inaugural ONE Welterweight Submission Grappling World Championship. But the brothers are not only finding success in competition.
Due to their rise as stars of the grappling world, the Ruotolo brothers have been able to execute their vision of blending two of their passions. The twins have a shared love for BJJ and surfing and are putting the two together in Costa Rica. Tye spoke about bringing the two worlds together ahead of his first title tilt in ONE.
“We’re building a spot where people can come train. We’re gonna teach them how to surf. We’re gonna do BJJ surf camps, just kinda come cruise in paradise for a week, up your jiu-jitsu game, and get to experience why we love it so much,” Ruotolo told ONE.
The dream to build the facility has largely been made possible by how the brothers have performed in ONE. Both Kade and Tye have taken home $50,000 performance bonuses. The influx of cash allowed them to finally begin building their dream facility, which is almost complete.
“The gym is pretty much done. Our house that we’ve been trying to build for 17, 18 years is getting finished. We’re just being able to get our pool in. We even got an oven for our pizza, like the brick oven. Everything that we could possibly want and hope, our dreams are coming true,” Ruotolo remarked.
Tye explained that in addition to training and teaching, the decision was made in order to share the love they have for Costa Rica. The twins want to show friends and family why they have moved to the country. That love is not hidden as Tye was emphatic about what he loved about the country.
“It’s one of the best places I’ve ever been to on Earth. It’s a blue zone. There’s blue zones all over the world with people that you see living over 100 years old,” the welterweight challenger said.
For Tye, the new home in Costa Rica offers a simple life with no distractions. Unlike larger cities such as San Diego, where the twins lived and trained, there is no large outside pressure from anyone or anything. It allows both Kade and Tye to focus on and enjoy life.
“There’s not too much outside bad influence. Where we’re at, our town has two restaurants. It doesn’t have a gas station, barely a grocery store. You can’t get into trouble there. If you get into trouble there, it’s because you’re riding your motorcycle too fast and you run into a tree. It’s complete freedom,” Ruotolo stated.
While they have enjoyed riches from their competitive careers, Costa Rican life has allowed them to forget about material matters. The Ruotolo brothers get to embrace nature, friends, and family in a setting they love. That happiness has no price tag.
“When I’m there I just want to spearfish, surf, train, like I don’t need any of that excess stuff. What’s the saying? You buy things that you don’t need to impress people that you don’t like. When I’m over there, all I want to do is the things that I love with the people that I love. I think that’s why we’ve always gravitated to that place,” Ruotolo said.
ONE Fight Night 16 airs live on Friday, November 3. The action begins at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Prime Video. The event is free for all Amazon Prime subscribers based in the U.S. and Canada.
